Milk experiment goes sour; N.C. teacher suspended

SMITHFIELD, N.C. -- A high school teacher was suspended for a classroom experiment that caused several students to vomit after drinking large amounts of milk.

Jeff Ferguson, a chemistry and physics teacher at Smithfield-Selma High School, organized the experiment last week to test the body's ability to neutralize acids in milk.

It was intended to show the body can handle only so much before a natural reaction occurs and the person vomits. Out of 42 students in two classes, at least five did just that.

On Wednesday, Ferguson failed to persuade a judge to let him return to the classroom. He wanted a temporary restraining order so that he could return to help his students prepare for end-of-semester exams, but Superior Court Judge Knox Jenkins denied his request.

"It's been rather unpleasant sitting at home and knowing nobody is teaching my class as effectively as I can," Ferguson said after the hearing. "There's not a lot positive about this situation."

The teacher's attorney, Lamar Armstrong, said students were not required to participate in the experiment, and students had receptacles in case they became ill.

"If anybody wanted to quit at any time, they could have," Armstrong said.

Parents alerted school administrators about the incident last Wednesday. Ferguson was sent home the next day and was suspended with pay Tuesday, pending an investigation by a law firm hired by the school district.